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I need to create a "utility type" table that basically holds one field of information and have that table be available to another table to pick and choose from. Did that make any sense?

The main table will be used to create proposals for bidding jobs with.

The utility table will hold a bunch of "exclusions".

Exclusions are used in the bid process to define what types of things the bidder is not responsible for, like permit fees, soil tests, etc.

Because every job is different from the next, the user should be able to choose any number of applicable "exclusions" for the job proposal they are creating.

So my question is:

Can a utility table be created to display a bunch of pre-defined "exclusions" and have the capability of simply clicking on a row or button and the exclusion will copy over to the proposal record being created?

What would be ever sweeter is being able to drag and drop as many exclusions as needed onto a proposal record.

Thanks for the response, unfortunately, that suggestion wouldn't work.

What I am looking for, I'll try to illustrate, is something like a "Super Multi-Selectable Value List"!

This list is where you can choose from one to a couple of dozen items in the list and have those items shown on the face of the document, which in the case is the "Bid/Proposal" that's being created.

I was using "soil tests or permit fees" as an example of what an exclusion is the our business. Some jobs might require only one, some might be complex and require many.

Basically, an exclusion is like an insurance policy.

Imagine you're operating a backhoe and dig into a power line or water main, some unforeseen obstacle not marked, etc. If your original proposal stated that for $2500.00 you will excavate a trench 4' deep and 50' long and with that an "Exclusion" that stated "Not responsible for Unmarked Underground Power Lines", etc, then you have legally covered your ass!!!

In any given week, there might be 20 or more projects out for bid, each one you intend on trying to win requires a bid proposal. So instead of repeatedly typing exclusions for each bid, there will be a table or list that already has them and all the user needs to do is select the ones he needs.

The selections are made in the checkbox. This checkbox is attached to a global which can be placed anywhere in any table for selection. The first cExclusionsSentence is calculation which puts them into sentence form. If you don't need to change the wording on any sentence or if you don't want to manually add a special sentence, this calculation should do the trick.

If you wish for the ability to create the Exclusion sentence and then manually change it, you can use the second technique which uses a standard text field for your Exclusion sentence and click button "fill with selected.' You could also put an auto-enter (replace) on the field (using same calc) but it can be dangerous ... if you've created your Exclusion sentence and then add sentence of "10% down is required within 5 days of contract finalization" ... and if you then change anything in the checkbox field, you will lose your manual addition to the sentence.

It will be up to you on which technique to use. You could add a lock field, number called Lock. And if 1 (for locked), don't let the value in the auto-enter field change, ie,

You could also create a cartesian product relationship between BidProposals and Exclusions and place a portal of Exclusions on your Bids layout. A portal would take up less space than checkbox. Turn off entry to the Exclusion and attach script as:

When you click an Exclusion, it will add it to your Bids Exclusion sentence but you could add the same sentence more than once without adjusting your script to remove dups. Many ways to go here... this would eliminate the need for a few fields but require adding a relationship; 6 of 1, half dozen ...

Q1: Can a "pop up" window be made to display the layout with the check boxes and also stay "on top" until closed?

Yes, it's been a while (like 4 years) since I've done it natively in FM and I can't test right now (we use plug-ins for windows control), but script to open the window would use something like:

New Window

Go to Layout [ ... ]

Loop

Pause [ indifinately ]

End Loop

... and then the button on the new window (which would be called Close Window) would be Exit Script. Back up first because I can't test it right now (or maybe others can confirm the process for you).

Q2: What is the best method to give the users a way to add new exclusions on the fly, without leaving the proposal?

It could be same thing: Open new small window based on layout of Exclusions table.

UPDATE: It might be easier in newer versions of FM with script triggers ... when background layout is selected, test could run on whether to open the pop-up window again (if it drops behind) and so forth. I just haven't played with it.